NIGHTWATCH Extract: Syria Bans Veils at Universities

Syria: For the record. Female students wearing a full face veil will be barred from Syrian university campuses, the country’s minister of higher education has said. A government official said the practice ran counter to the secular, academic values and traditions of Syrian universities. The ruling, published on the All4Syria website, was said to be in response to requests from students and parents.

Phi Beta Iota: This is vastly more significant than the French initiatives. It marks a recognition by Syria that Indonesia, Malaysia, and Turkey are on the right track toward a mix of secular government and religious piety, and is the first step toward an end of the lunacy and atrocities against women that begin with their being forced to cover themselves in a manner more characteristic of slaves under the total control of men who have no idea how to deal with an intelligent woman.